Tag Archives: Antonio Giovinazzi

Antonio Giovinazzi became the first Italian since Jarno Trulli to compete in a Formula Once race this weekend, standing in for Pascal Wehrlein for the Sauber F1 Team in Melbourne. The Scuderia Ferrari development and reserve driver was called up to the team with less than 12 hours notice following concerns being raised around Wehrlein’s ability to complete a race distance due to an injury sustained in the off season impacting his training schedule.

Having completed 2 days of pre-season testing for the team, Antonio Giovinazzi, found himself able to push team mate Marcus Ericsson throughout the race weekend, qualifying just on place behind him on the grid. In the race Giovinazzi bought his Sauber C36 home to finish 12th overall, whilst out of the points, team members and those outside the team were keen to praise his performance:

“A very impressive performance from Antonio during his first Formula One race. He showed his potential as well as what the car is capable of. The lap times were quite satisfying”

Monisha Kaltenborn, Team Principal

Ferrari President Sergio Marchionne, in his celebration of his Scuderia’s return to the top step added a note of recognition to Giovinazzi:

“Congratulations to Antonio for his debut in Formula One”

Commenting on his own performance Giovinazzi added:

“It was a good race, and I am happy with my performance today. My objective was to gain more experience and collect mileage in the car. I will sit together with my engineers to analyze areas where I can improve. I want to thank the Sauber F1 Team and Scuderia Ferrari again for this opportunity. It was an amazing race weekend for me.”

See below to hear from the driver himself in this video uploaded by the team following the race:

Italian Antonio Giovinazzi will replace Pascal Wehrlien for the Australian Grand Prix this weekend with the Sauber F1 Team. The Scuderia Ferrari development and reserve will make his Formula One debut sitting in for the German due to niggling fitness concerns following a incident during the pre-season Race of Champions Event.

“My fitness level is not as it should be for a full race distance because of my training deficit. I explained the situation to the team yesterday evening. Therefore, the Sauber F1 Team has decided not to take any risks. It is a pity, but the best decision for the team.” Comments Wehrlien.

At this time both team and driver remain confident Pascal will return to the cockpit for the second round of the 2017 season in China.

“We have great respect of Pascal’s openness and professionalism. This decision was definitely not an easy one for him, it underlines his qualities as a team player. The focus is now on his fitness level, and in such a situation we do not take any unnecessary risks. Pascal will be in China as planned.” Remarked Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn.

Giovinazzo completed Fp3 in P20 as he aclimitises to the track and continues team integration.

As the F1 world rapidly heads towards the winter break. The sport finds its self in a highly unusual position of having for seats still to be confirmed on the 2017 grid.

Whilst it is not out of the ordinary for seats at the lower end of the field to still be open at this point on in the year, for a seat to be open with the championship winning team is almost unimaginable. Nico Rosberg’s shock retirement from the sport has effectively stalled the driver market with no driver or team wanting to make a commitment before Mercedes conclude a deal with whoever their new driver will be.

At the time of writing favourites for the drive alongside Lewis Hamilton with the Silver Arrows in 2017 are; Valtteri Bottas, Pascal Wehrlein, and my own favourite Sergio Perez. Which ever driver is awarded the drive will have a knock on effect for the teams they are currently or likely to be driving for.

Should Mercedes manage to agree terms with Williams and they release Bottas, the team will be left with serious lack of experience in their driver line up as they head towards one of the most technically challenging regulation changes in two decades., As such working with Pascal Wehrlein who has only taken part in 21 races in unlikely to be their first choice. More likely would be development driver Paul Di Resta taking the role or recently retired Felipe Massa or Jenson Button making an unexpected return.

In the scenario in which Mercedes take the brave move of putting Pascal Wehrlein in the second seat of the W08, Manor Racing will be left with two seats to fill. The team are likely to be secure drivers with funding, which could lead to a return of a funded Rio Haryanto to the grid. Anther option could be Felipe Nasr should, a driver Bernie Ecclestone has commented he is keen to keep on the grid to assure Brazilian interest in the Championship. Manor Racing development driver Jordan King is likely to find a role within the team. Dependant on the budget he brings this could be in the role of reserve or second driver.

Moving to Sauber, with Marcus Ericsson confirmed the rejuvenated Swiss team have one seat still to fill. 2017 will be a season of rebuilding for the team, as such their focus will be on ensuring consistency and strong feedback. In an ideal world I can imagine the team would like to work with a driver already familiar with the world of F1. Critics may dismiss this option but I would not rule out Pastor Maldonado finding a new home in Hinwil. Should the team head down the rookie route GP2 vice champion Antonio Giovinazzi would be a bold move and one demonstrating the team’s commitment to the future.

Sergio Perez moving to Mercedes would cause Sahara Force India a great deal of pain. Of course Mercedes would compensate the team, but over the past 3 seasons Force India have focused the majority of their business development efforts around building a profile in Mexico. To loose Perez would be a major blow. As such I can see them looking to replace one Mexican for another and signing Esteban Gutiérrez to the team.

One thing is for sure, the F1 silly season is far from over and it still has a few surprises in store!